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This paper explores the privileged position Japanese citizens held during the era of the White Australia Policy. The Immigration Restriction Act (IRA) was introduced in December 1901. As the major piece of legislation in the now-infamous White Australia Policy, the Act made it virtually impossible for non-Europeans to migrate to Australia and closed Australia to further settlement by the Japanese. However, Japanese people enjoyed a special position among non-Europeans under the White Australia Policy thanks to Japan's rising international status, as well as its sustained diplomatic pressure on Australia. Although the Commonwealth government was determined to exclude Japanese permanent settlers, it sought in many ways to render the policy of exclusion less offensive to the Japanese. In the early 1900s, two minor modifications to the IRA were implemented in order to relax the restrictions imposed on Japanese citizens. Moreover, in the administration of Commonwealth immigration laws, Japanese people received far more lenient treatment than other non-Europeans and were treated with respect and extra courtesies by Australian officials. By examining these privileges afforded to Japanese citizens, this paper aims to shed new light on the issue of Japanese exclusion under the White Australia Policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]